The proposals sparked a heated local debate as sluggish state aid growth and strict limits on local tax increases continue to trap many local governments in a difficult position with few options to manage rising costs.
Supreme Judicial Court
Posted inCourts
In first ruling of its kind, Mass. high court says Meta not shielded from lawsuits over addictive features
The Supreme Judicial Court became the first statewide high court to decide that a 1996 federal law shielding internet platforms from liability over user-posted content does not render Meta immune to allegations that its design exploited young users.
Posted inBallot Questions
Mass. Senate asks top state court to examine constitutionality of legislative reform ballot questions
For the first time in a decade, lawmakers exercised their authority to seek an advisory opinion from the state’s highest court, asking justices whether a pair of ballot questions on course to reach voters in November raise constitutional concerns.
Posted inPolitics
Two veteran Democrats sue to block all-party primary ballot question
A pair of Democratic state committee members want the state’s highest court to toss a ballot question that would shift state elections to an all-party primary system, teeing up a legal fight over a measure that could fundamentally reshape political power in Massachusetts.
Posted inHousing
Our top five housing stories of 2025
The Bay State’s housing crunch seemed to reach into all corners in 2025, tying up courts, lawmakers navigating climate and transportation concerns, groups dependent on federal fair housing funding, and services promising to make it easier for more people to afford to live in pricey Massachusetts.
Posted inCourts
Bar advocate work stoppage becomes an SJC separation-of-powers conundrum
Over the course of 70 minutes of arguments by the two sides, and pointed questioning from the justices, none of the Supreme Judicial Court’s seven judges appeared eager to snatch the power of the purse from Beacon Hill lawmakers.
Posted inCourts
SJC considers whether charter schools must obey public records laws
The Mystic Valley Regional Charter School, in rebuffing at least 10 public records requests for information on various aspects of its operations, insists that it is not covered by the sweeping statute guaranteeing public access to the records of government entities.
Posted inCourts
Is Harvard responsible for the alleged sale of body parts from its medical school morgue?
It remains still unclear if the behavior of a Harvard morgue manager who allegedly ran a multi-state human remains scheme – “ghoulish” in the words of a Supreme Judicial Court justice considering the case – means that the Ivy League school is also on the hook.
Posted inPolitics
Political Notebook: An ad campaign’s cutting room floor
History, as the aphorism goes, is written by the winners. So are the tourism ads celebrating the victories 250 years later.
Posted inCourts
SJC: $70,000 engagement ring must be returned to giver if wedding called off
“We now join the modern trend adopted by the majority of jurisdictions that have considered the issue and retire the concept of fault in this context; where, as here, the planned wedding does not ensue and the engagement is ended, the engagement ring must be returned to the donor regardless of fault,” Justice Dalila Wendlandt wrote for a unanimous court.
Posted inHousing
20 groups weigh in on MBTA Communities Act case
The key issue in the case is whether Campbell can compel compliance when the MBTA Communities Act statute itself is silent on her enforcement power and specifically mentions the loss of grant funds as the penalty for noncompliance.
Posted inCourts
SJC rules Mass. switchblade ban unconstitutional
Second Amendment protections are “not limited to firearms,” Justice Serge Georges wrote for a unanimous court. “Like handguns, a person can carry a switchblade for offensive or defensive purposes in case of confrontation.”
Posted inCourts
SJC to decide who gets $70,000 ring after engagement called off
The question before the high court, according to a request for amicus briefs, is whether Massachusetts courts should continue applying a “fault-based approach” in determining whether an engagement ring must be returned to the giver after a broken engagement. If not, the court asks, what’s the better rule?
Posted inCourts
Is collecting your data the modern wiretap?
Could using AdTech software to monitor a public website visitor’s online actions amount to an illegal wiretap in Massachusetts?
Posted inCourts
Arguments in 7-Eleven franchise case ‘almost incomprehensible’
A case that has ping-ponged between state and federal courts considering whether 7-Eleven franchisees are independent contractors or employees under Massachusetts law left the SJC openly befuddled.
Posted inCourts
Full SJC to hear Milton rezoning case
Justice Serge Georges Jr. said the case against Milton, which centers around how to enforce the MBTA Communities Act, “raises novel questions of law which are of public importance and which are time sensitive and likely to recur.”
Posted inCourts
When is a spouse not a spouse under Medicaid rules?
After five years of back and forth on the issue, including three formal hearings, MassHealth denied Tingos coverage, even after he passed away in 2020. The state agency said Tingos’s wife was not “genuinely uncooperative.”
Posted inCourts
Healey’s SJC pick questioned about lack of judicial experience
“I would bring a lot of experience with the different courts of the Commonwealth, in a different way,” Bessie Dewar said.
Posted inCourts
State solicitor tapped as Healey’s first SJC pick
Gov. Maura Healey has picked Elizabeth “Bessie” Dewar, the state solicitor and a former US Supreme Court clerk, as her first nomination to the state Supreme Judicial Court.
Posted inCourts
SJC to weigh wrongful death restrictions in cigarette suits
IT’S THE nightmare scenario. After years of long-term cigarette addiction, a loved one is diagnosed with cancer. Years of chemotherapy, surgeries, attempts at quitting and relapses, and bone-deep exhaustion follow. Meanwhile, […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
SJC rules consent required for blood alcohol test
THE POLICE CANNOT test a person’s blood to determine blood alcohol content without that person’s consent, even if the person authorized the blood draw itself, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled […]
Posted inBallot Questions, Courts
SJC quickly dismisses lawsuit over dental ballot question
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL Court quickly dismissed a lawsuit brought by opponents of a ballot question regulating dental insurance that sought to change the ballot question summary submitted by proponents. With […]
Posted inEconomy
SJC sides with Grubhub, allows arbitration requirements for drivers
GRUBHUB MAY REQUIRE its drivers to submit employment disputes to arbitration, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled Wednesday. The ruling essentially codifies the status quo. But because of its potentially […]
Posted inCourts
SJC hears arguments on whether to allow permanent voting by mail
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT is poised to decide whether to overturn the new law allowing Massachusetts residents to vote by mail for any reason. Gov. Charlie Baker on June 22 signed […]